


everything's gonna be okay soon (maybe tomorrow)

by returnsandreturns



Series: everything that falls down eventually rises [1]
Category: Daredevil (TV), Jessica Jones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, and her bisexuality, and possible thing for blondes, basically: the daredevil pilot but starring Jessica Jones
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-22
Updated: 2015-11-23
Packaged: 2018-05-02 19:13:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5260406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/returnsandreturns/pseuds/returnsandreturns
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Well, blondie, looks like you’re in the middle of a regular shitshow,” Jessica says, as soon as she’s let into the holding room where the woman she now knows as Karen Page is currently handcuffed. She shoots a glance over her shoulder at the cop who let her in. “Seriously? She’s a goddamn waif, take the cuffs off.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> There's only going to be one more chapter of this unless I get out of control, I just don't have time to finish it tonight and I'm overeager because JESSICA FUCKING JONES. GOD. 
> 
> I'll post the second bit ASAP.

Jessica sighs when she hears the screams coming from her downstairs neighbor’s apartment. The woman’s been relatively quiet since she moved in, nothing more offensive than playing pop music loud enough that it drifts up through the air vents into her office. She was really looking forward to a neighbor that wasn’t high on something or constantly shrieking about using coasters or having sex so loud that it has to be connected to some kind of weird voyeuristic kink where they can only get off when everybody on the block can hear them.

She kicks down the door unenthusiastically, expecting to have to beat up some rapist piece of shit who can’t take no for an answer in the face of a pretty blonde only to find said pretty blonde covered in blood and clutching a pretty obvious murder weapon beside a dead body.

“I didn’t do this,” she says, looking up at Jessica, blue eyes shot through with red. “ _I didn’t do this._ ”

Jessica takes in the scene—multiple stab wounds, victim’s blood on her hands, _literally holding a bloody fuckin’ knife._

“. . .I believe you,” she says, because she does, for some reason. Then, the cops come, because of course _this_ is the _one_ time somebody in her building actually calls the cops when screaming happens.

She gives one of them she recognizes a smile when he sees her.

“Friend and client of mine,” she says, gesturing towards the sobbing woman they’re currently handcuffing. “I’ll be coming along for the ride.”

*

“Well, blondie, looks like you’re in the middle of a regular shitshow,” Jessica says, as soon as she’s let into the holding room where the woman she now knows as Karen Page is currently handcuffed. She shoots a glance over her shoulder at the cop who let her in. “Seriously? She’s a goddamn waif, take the cuffs off.”

She gets an eye roll in response, but he unlocks the cuffs and leaves them alone.

“Alright,” Jessica says, placing her hands flat on the table while Karen rubs at her risk. “Lay it out for me.”

“You’re a P.I., right?” Karen asks, voice raspy. “Do you even take cases like this?”

“Hopeless ones?” Jessica asks, then regrets it a little when Karen’s mouth twists down, adding: “Nah, I mostly cater to jealous husbands. But, you know, I’ve got a thing for hopeless cases? I think they remind me of me.”

Karen laughs, maybe, a little scoffing noise.

“I can’t afford to pay you anything,” she says. “I don’t—I don’t even know what you can _do_.”

Jessica thinks, fleetingly, about calling Hogarth, but the only thing Karen’s got on her side in that case is that she’s hot and blonde and would look great crying for the reporters on the steps on the courthouse. Not everybody likes hopeless cases, though—not like they like _blondes._

“Maybe nothing,” she says. “Let’s see what sack of shit public defender they drag out for you first. If they can’t do anything, I’ll see where I can come in. Dig up some shit, find you a story that works. You’ve got to tell me what’s going on first, though.”

The door opens again, and Jessica sighs.

“We’re in the middle of a meeting,” she says.

“Ms. Page, these men say they’re your lawyers,” the same cop from before says, ignoring Jessica completely except for a dirty look.

“. . .you live in _my_ building and you’ve got your own _lawyers_?” Jessica asks.

“. . .I don’t—” Karen starts, but she’s interrupted by a man who pushes in past the cop—okay suit, ridiculous hair, sunny ass smile on his face.

“Ms. Page, lovely to see you again,” he says, smiling at her before turning back to the cop, who’s stepping aside to let another man step in—nice mouth, sunglasses at night and indoors, so _hopefully_ blind. “We’ll be speaking with our client privately now.”

“Do you know these men?” the cop asks, and Karen looks confused.

“Of course she does,” Jessica says, scowling up at him. “Why else would they be here?”

After a moment, Karen nods.

“Yeah,” she says, “They’re—they’re my lawyers.”

The cop leaves again, and Jessica says, “Alright, who are you clowns, really?”

“Matt Murdock, attorney at law,” the blind one says, reaching out a hand. If the brief look of surprise that passes over his face is any indication, Jessica forgot to hold back on the strength of her handshake, “and this is my associate, Foggy Nelson.”

“Foggy?” Jessica asks, snorting.

“And you are?” Foggy asks.

“Skeptical,” she replies.

*

It turns out that Nelson and Murdock are legit lawyers, albeit actual newborns, basically. They seem like nice enough guys, though, for _lawyers_ , and they listen intently as Karen describes what happened to her even though it sounds like actual bullshit.

They seem to believe her and so does Jessica. She knows what a killer looks like, kind of intimately, and Karen’s not it. Plus, yeah, maybe the whole _everything went blurry and then suddenly I was a murderer_ thing hits a little too close to home for her to walk away now.

Outside, after Karen’s been taken back to a cell, Matt says, “It was nice to meet you, Ms. Jones,” and he actually sounds like he means it.

“Gross, never call me that again,” she says. “It’s Jessica.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, Jessica,” Matt continues. “Why exactly are you trying to help Karen, if she can’t pay you?”

“I could ask you literally the exact same question,” she replies.

“Matt has a warped sense of justice and doesn’t understand the concept of our rent and how we need human money to pay it,” Foggy says. “But, seriously, don’t P.I.’s normally sniff around civil cases? Though—to be fair—I’ve seen very few private eyes that aren’t also in black and white.”

“Hey, I’m just performing my neighborly duties,” Jessica says. “I like to keep tabs on crime scenes I wander into the middle of. Speaking of tabs, give me your phone.”

She makes a grabbing motion at Foggy, and he acquiesces after a brief moment of hesitation. She keys her number in and shoves it back at him.

“Call me when there’s news,” she says, starting to back away from them. “I’ll be around if you need my skillset at all.”

“What’s exactly in your skillset?” Matt asks, lips turned up in a smile.

Jessica turns on a heel and starts to walk away, calling over her shoulder, “Hopefully you don’t have to find out!”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 3 AM phone calls are never good news, but they’re very rarely as bad as "get your ass out of bed to go talk to some lawyers about an attempting strangling" calls.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I handwaved some stuff, because, whatever, PLOTS, but here you go!

3 AM phone calls are never good news, but they’re very rarely as bad as _get your ass out of bed to go talk to some lawyers about an attempting strangling_ calls. Jessica’s back in her jeans and pulling on her jacket in the elevator, glad she had the foresight to only drink two shots of whiskey before she passed out.

She spares a passing scoff for Nelson and Murdock’s shitty handwritten sign before she barges in.

“Nice sign,” she says, wryly, interrupting a quiet conversation that Matt and Foggy are having by the front door. Karen’s curled in on herself a little in their tiny conference room, clutching a mug, but she looks up at the sound of Jessica’s voice.

“It’s a work in progress,” Matt says.

“You might want to speed up that progress if you don’t want any of your hypothetical clients to realize you’ve been only been practicing for about thirty seconds,” she says.

“Hey, it’s been almost a whole day now,” Foggy says.

“Why don’t you go have a seat?” Matt offers. “Ms. Page asked for you directly, it’s why we called you in so late.”

“Also, because we thought you might have been threatening us earlier,” Foggy says, “and, while we definitely are not scared, we _are_ cautious.”

“Smart,” Jessica says.

She brushes past them to drop into the seat next to Karen, pulling the chair close to hers.

“You good, kid?” she asks, nudging Karen with her shoulder. Something like a smile ghosts over Karen’s face, momentarily, and she leans into the touch. Jessica should probably cut this off before she imprints on her like a baby duck or something, but Karen looks wrecked _._ Surely Jessica can get over her own personal space shit enough to at least sit near her.

“I don’t know how to answer that,” Karen replies, honestly.

“Yeah, fair,” Jessica says. “What with the police brutality and everything. Trippy night.”

“You’re tellin’ me,” Karen murmurs. “Thanks for coming.”

“Well, I can already tell this is going to be a great bar story someday,” Jessica says. “Can never have too many of those.”

“Happy ending, you think?”

“Who’s happy these days? You might have to settle for a relatively okay ending,” Jessica says. She nods her head towards Matt and Foggy as they come into the room, adding, “These two idiots seem surprisingly competent at what they do, so maybe we can get at least get you that.”

“A glowing recommendation,” Matt says, deadpan. “Are you ready to make your statement, Ms. Page?”

Karen glances at Jessica for a moment then nods.

“Yeah,” she says, swallowing hard. “Yeah, I’m ready.”

 

*

 

“She can stay with me,” Jessica says, before she fully realizes that she’s saying it, after they tell Karen that she can’t go back to her apartment yet.

“Same building,” Foggy says. “Might be risky, if they’ve got eyes on her.”

“Oh, I can handle a little risk,” Jessica says.            

“She might be safer with me,” Matt says, hesitantly.

“Trust me,” Jessica says, because who the fuck does this guy even think he is. “She won’t be.”

Foggy looks conflicted for a second before he leans back in his chair and says, “Honestly, _I_ wouldn’t cross you. Where do you want to go, Ms. Page?”

Karen looks up at Jessica with those ridiculous eyes.

“Are you sure about this?” she asks, quietly.

“I’m not sending you out in the open with a guy who can’t see or another who was clearly born from the unholy union of a human man and a teddy bear,” Jessica says. “I at least know my way around a fight.”

“Should we resent that?” Foggy asks Matt, and Matt shrugs.

“It’s up to you, Karen,” he says, and Jessica doesn’t think she’s imagining the frustration in his voice, just around the edges. Interesting. Murdock’s got something going on.

“I’ll go with Jessica,” Karen says, quickly. “I—appreciate the offer, but I trust her.”

Part of Jessica’s brain screams that trusting her is probably a terrible idea, but, really, it’s the best one they’ve got right now. Jessica can handle whatever goons that Union Allied might send out, and maybe Karen can sleep through the night without any form of murder happening. A lofty goal, at this point, but an achievable one.

 

*

“Do you want to stop at your place and get some clothes or something?” Jessica asks, as they step into the elevator.

“Do you think it’s safe?” Karen asks.

“I figured it’s about a fifty fifty shot that there’s some asshole lurking in the shadows,” Jessica says, leaning against the wall and shrugging. “I like those odds.”

“. . .I’d _really_ like to wear my own pants,” Karen says, laughing softly.

Jessica nods, reaching out to hit the button for Karen’s floor. She opens Karen’s door, gesturing for her to stay in the hall while she steps inside and flips on the light.

“. . .it looks clear,” she starts, then turns at the sound of a boot squeaking on the floor behind her. Of course, the asshole in the shadows was waiting behind the front door. That’s cute.

She has him thrown across the room and laying in the wreckage of Karen’s dining room table in about ten seconds, then strolls over to pluck the knife up where it fell on the floor.

“Drop something?” she asks, falling to her knees and holding it in front of his face as he blinks up at her dazedly. When he kicks up to try to catch her off guard, she catches his leg and twists, not quite hard enough to break it but enough that he can tell that she _could_.

“What the hell are you?” he spits out.

“Scarier than whatever douchebag hired you,” she replies, calmly. “Now, you’re going to tell me why the hell you’re here or I’m going to throw you through that window right over there.”

The guy’s mouth twists, eyes darting around, but he stays silent.

“Right,” Jessica says, getting to her feet and grabbing him by the shoulders, lifting him off the ground so he spits and swears.

She’s halfway to the window when he finally says, “Alright! Okay!” and Jess drops him.

“Talk,” she says.

Three minutes later, she’s turning to glare at Karen, who’s still standing in the doorway, looking shocked.

“You _kept_ the fucking file?” she asks.

“Uh,” Karen says.

 

*

 

“Say you had a lackey tied up in your apartment and a flashdrive full of compromising information about a certain company in your hand,” Jessica says, as soon as Matt picks up.

“. . .are you both okay?” Matt asks.

“We’re fine,” Jessica replies. “ _He’s_ probably had better days.”

“Where does the flashdrive come in?”

“Karen lied to us,” Jessica says. “She kept the files. Now, we’ve got to figure out what to do with them and the guy who was about to _stab_ her for them.”

“. . .we’ll be there in twenty minutes,” Matt says.

 

*

 

“Just for the record,” Foggy says, to no one in particular, “I’m not a fan of what’s happening right now.”

They’re all standing in front of the unconscious body that’s tied up on Jessica’s couch.

“I’m not exactly thrilled,” Karen says, hugging herself a little.

“Also, how did you _do_ that?” Foggy continues, turning to Jessica. “He looks like he just fought a whole _gang_.”

“Krav maga,” Jessica replies, straight-faced.

“We need to get that guy out of here and that file into the right hands,” Matt says, rubbing a hand over his face.

“We can’t take it to the police,” Karen says. “It’ll never see the light of day.”

“This is what you want?” he asks. “Getting it all out there?”

Karen nods, then winces and says, “Yes.”

“Well, kids,” Jessica says. “Let’s get to it.”

 

*

 

Getting the guy to the steps of the Bulletin without anybody seeing takes way too long, especially because of the rain. Jessica should probably just tell them that she could lift the guy over her head without a second thought, but she doesn’t exactly like to advertise it. It’s bad enough that Karen knows.

Back at Jessica’s place, after it’s hopefully all over, Karen changes into a pair of sweatpants and pulls her soaked hair into a ponytail before she finally drops down onto Jessica’s couch and says, “So, you’re an Avenger or something.”

“Or something,” Jessica says, slowly.

“Why didn’t you just carry that guy?” Karen asks. “You picked him up like he was nothing earlier.”

“I liked watching Foggy sweat,” Jessica says, and Karen smiles.

“I don’t know how I can ever thank you,” she says, too earnest for Jessica’s comfort. “For helping me out.”

“You don’t have to,” Jessica says, quickly, waving a hand dismissively. “Just go. Sleep. This hell day finally ending will be thanks enough.”

“I can help you out around here!” Karen says. “I’m actually a really good secretary when I'm not. . .you know, taking down the company from the inside.”

“I don’t need a secretary,” Jessica says. “I need you to go to bed, so I can pass out here in peace.”

“I can take the couch,” Karen says. “It’s. . .comfortable.”

“Don’t lie to me again, Page,” Jessica says. “This couch is a torture device designed to keep people from staying too long.”

Karen pushes a few stray hairs away from her face before she angles her head back at Jessica.

“Then we’ll share the bed,” she says, firmly.

“Scandalous,” Jessica replies.

After a little arguing, they share the bed. It might be more significant, if they weren’t both so exhausted that they fall asleep within five minutes. The next morning, Karen’s gone when Jessica wakes up, a note that says _thank you, see you soon_ sitting on her pillow.

She goes back to sleep. She deserves a day off.

 

*

 

“I’m here to offer my secretarial services,” Karen says, a few days later, walking into Jessica’s office after knocking twice. “Also, you should probably fix your door.”

Jessica stares at her for a long moment.

“You always get so dressed up for work?” she asks, raising her eyebrows at Karen from where she’s slumped over her desk. Karen makes a face, smoothing down the front of her deep green dress.

“You always get so drunk for work?” she returns, stepping forward with a _click click click_ of shiny heels to pluck Jessica’s glass out of her hand and sniff it. “Whiskey?”

“Possibly too cheap to be legally termed that,” Jessica says.

“It’s noon,” Karen says.

“You’ve only got a problem when you start drinking in the morning.”

“Very sound logic,” Karen says, taking the empty bottle of whiskey next to her and putting it in the trash can.

Jessica vaguely smiles, leaning back in her chair to get a better look at Karen now that she’s all cleaned up and not looking like a whacked out murderer. She knows how to wear a dress, that’s for sure—Jess didn’t even wear dresses before she was some asshole’s fucked up plaything, always felt like she was an off-brand dollar store doll trying to wear Barbie’s clothes.

“So,” Karen says, putting her hands on her hips. “What can I do? I mean, besides clean, because— _wow_ , I’m definitely going to be cleaning.”

“I already told you that I don’t need a secretary,” Jessica says. “Especially not one who’s annoyingly persistent _cop bait_.”

“We’ll see,” Karen says, cheerfully. “What about filing? I’m fantastic at filing, really stellar. What’s your filing system like?”

Jessica taps her temple.

“All up here,” she says, winking.

Really, it’s an erratic system of Post-It notes and index cards and confusingly labeled .txt files all over her laptop, but she’s pretty sure Karen’s not going to stick around to figure that out.

“Is that why you don’t even have a real office?” Karen asks.

“ _Wow_ ,” Jessica says, mock offended. “I have a _sign_.”

“A sign doesn’t make an office,” Karen says. “You know what makes an office? A lack of an adjoining bedroom and about six less half empty liquor bottles.”

“I should have let that guy stab you,” Jessica says, without heat, crossing her arms over her chest as she sinks further into her chair. Karen laughs, a startled, happy noise, but she doesn’t reply. Instead, she starts cleaning, and Jessica watches her for lack of anything better to do and definitely not for any creepy reasons that involve Karen bending over and Karen’s well-fitted dress.

When Karen starts making noises about finding a broom because “Did you know there’s broken glass in, like, _every corner_ of this room?”

“Things happen, glass breaks,” Jessica says, waving a hand aimlessly in the air. “I don’t even own a broom, because it’s really a losing battle.”

“Not being a health code violation?” Karen asks.

“I mean, I’m only legally allowed to call this an office at all because I strong-armed the clerk at the courthouse,” Jessica says. “I’ve got bigger concerns.”   

 “Wait,” Karen says, giggling and moving to sit in one of the chairs in front of Jessica’s desk. “Did you literally strong-arm them? Like with your strong arms?”

Jessica shakes her head, trying not to smile.

“Now that you’re sitting, you gonna tell me why you’re actually here?” she asks.

Karen looks at her for a long moment.

“Just trying to say thanks,” she says, eventually, but that’s a fake smile—Jessica _definitely_ knows those when she sees them. She narrows her eyes at Karen.

“By taking out my trash and criticizing my office?”

Karen doesn’t say anything for a long time, fingers anxiously tucking her hair behind her ears. Her voice is quiet and a little hoarser, like it’s hard to get out, when she says, “I haven’t slept in three days.”

“So this is just a reaction to the sleep deprivation,” Jessica offers.

Karen shakes her head.

“No,” she says, not quite meeting Jessica’s eyes. “I just—I don’t want to be _alone_.”

Jessica knew the baby duck thing was going to happen. She’s got to stop unofficially rescuing damsels and shit on top of her day job, it’s only going to lead to bad things. Like _feelings._

“Go sleep,” she says, sighing, pointing towards her bedroom. “You know where the bed is and there’s t-shirts in the dresser.”

“Really?” Karen asks, surprised.

“Yeah, really,” Jessica replies. “You’re relieved of your duties. Go take a damn nap.”

Karen’s mouth opens like she’s going to say something then immediately shuts again.

“Okay,” she says, after a beat, smiling genuinely this time. “Thanks.”

Jessica makes a non-committal noise because otherwise she’ll say something dumb like _any time_ or _maybe I can join you_ or _maybe we can do something that’s not sleeping_ , and Karen gets to her feet. She takes off her heels before she walks into the bedroom, dangling them from her fingertips.

Karen sleeps straight into night. Jessica maybe checks up on her a few times, but it’s just because she knows what nightmares are like right after shit like what Karen’s been through has gone down. She briefly considers waking her up when she’s finally ready to sleep, but it’s not like they haven’t done this before. When she slides in next to her, Karen stirs a little, waking up and blinking at her.

“Oh, sorry,” she says, starting to sit up. “I’ll just go.”

Jessica wraps her fingers around Karen’s wrist to keep her there.

“’s a big bed for one person,” she says, around a yawn. “I’m not enough of a bitch to send you back to your scary blood-stained trauma apartment.”

Karen lets herself be pulled back down, curling up so she’s facing Jessica, her knees curved towards her. Her makeup’s smeared on Jessica’s pillow case, streaks of once clearly careful eyeliner duplicated on her eyelids when she shuts them again.

“You’re a good person, Jessica Jones,” Karen says, softly.

“Don’t spread that around,” Jessica replies, but her heart’s doing something sketchy.

 

*

 

She wakes up on her back with Karen draped over top of her, long limbs and dead weight keeping Jessica pinned down. Karen’s face is hidden in her neck, and she’s making these little breathy noises as she sleeps, and it’s just—it’s a _lot_. Jessica considers pushing her off, but she’s caught between needing to get up for work and really, really liking the feeling of another body this close to her own when she’s sober and in her right mind.

She settles for somewhere in the middle, gently shaking Karen’s shoulder.

Karen wakes up slowly, smiling when she raises her head and sees Jessica underneath her until she clearly realizes what’s going on, making a face.

“Oh my god, sorry,” she says, blushing and rolling away to bury her head in a pillow. “I should have told you I’m a stealth cuddler.”

“Yes, how dare you,” Jessica deadpans. “You want coffee?”

“Please?” Karen asks, voice muffled.

She resists some weird intrinsic urge to touch Karen’s hair, which is a hell of a bird’s nest right now.

Karen wanders out after the coffee’s finished brewing, her hair smoothed back in a loose bun, wearing an oversized t-shirt and a pair of boxers she took from Jessica’s dresser. She smiles when Jessica offers her a mug, a faint echo of the smile from earlier, and Jessica groans.

“What?” Karen asks.

“Be cool about this,” Jessica replies, sitting the mug aside and sliding her hand over Karen’s cheek instead, tangling it in her hair. Karen gasps a little, but she leans into the kiss with her whole body, hands running over Jessica’s bare arms.

Karen looks a little stunned when they pull apart.

“Do you do this with everyone you save?” she asks, a little breathless.

“I don’t really save people all that often,” Jessica says.

“You saved me,” Karen says. “That’s a start.”

She’s got to stop letting stunning blondes lead her to the ways of white spandex and crime fighting, but there’s time to think about that later. Right now, there’s kissing and coffee and probably no attempted murders.

Probably.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the hypothetical future, Karen ends up working at Nelson & Murdock, Jessica freelances for them sometimes, and Karen makes her lasagna.

**Author's Note:**

> [I'm on Tumblr, doing things.](http://returnsandreturns.tumblr.com)


End file.
